Dunvegan Castle (Isle of Skye) - 13 May

Our host informed us it doesn't get dark here until after 11pm and in winter they only get 3hrs of sunlight for months - yikes!! The creaks and squeaks of our cabin keep us entertained - however the shower is excellent 🚿.

Early start for me today as I awoke at 5am needing the toilet and it was light. Sue follow suit not long after and then I lay tossing and turning until finally about 6.30am I gave up and had a shower. It gave me time to post my blog from yesterday as we lost internet connection by the time we'd returned from our roast dinner 🍷. 

The picturesque scenery continues on a daily basis. As we headed towards Dunvegan Castle the clouds were very low and light rain was falling. This is my snap of the low cloud as we headed down the mountain:

We have a great habit of checking out interesting places between stops and we have a few planned for today. The first is Sligachan Bridge. Other than having an interesting name, it's estimated to have been built in the early 19th century and has an enchanting legend surrounding the waters under the bridge.

Not only do some believe the waters hold the key to eternal youth - if you hold your head under the water for seven seconds - but legend has it they were integral to a peaceful end to a battle between two warring factions. The bridge and waters were stunning:

Just across the bridge was this 'Figures in the landscape' sculpture created by Artist Stephen Tinney depicting two figures: 

• Skye born crofter John Mackenzie is the seated figure. He was the first British professional mountain guide experienced to Alpine standards.
• The standing figure is Professor Norman Collie who went on to become a regular climbing client and life long friend of Mackenzie.
• Together both men formed a prolific climbing partnership which lasted fifty years. As pioneers of this area, they mapped and named many of the peaks.

Here's more pics of the spectacular scenery we have come to expect:

We reach our first destination, Dunvegan Castle and Gardens.

Arriving at Dunvegan Castle, the tone is set by the imposing land bridge leading to the colonnaded portico entrance built by John Norman (24th Chief) in 1814. 

Dunvegan Castle is one of the greatest Hebridean castles and the only Highland fortress to have been continuously occupied by the same family for 800 years. Architecturally, it contains the work of at least ten building periods ranging from the 1200's to the 1850's. 

Today, the castle has a unified design with Victorian dummy pepper-pots and defensive battlements running the whole length of the roof line. This restoration was carried out by the 25th Chief between 1840 and 1850 to the plans of Robert Brown of Edinburgh at a total cost of 8,000 pounds. The castle has an impressive entrance hall, ornately decorated State Rooms and mix of building styles that reflect the requirements of the clan Chiefs who built them over the centuries. 

Here's some shots of the Castle and it's impressive gardens:

Entrance to castle

Having enjoyed our wander around the castle, we headed off to visit the Skye Museum of Island Life to learn about the 'croft house' (or thatched house) and how people used to live. We visited a croft house that was built in the mid 19th century and used to be owned by John and Anne Graham and their 10 children. It was last occupied by one of their sons in 1957. It was opened as a museum in 1965 as the number of croft houses started to diminish:

This house is a good example of a typical Skye home of that time. When building a croft house, people in the Highlands and Islands could not afford to import materials. Consequently, they were limited to what was available at no cost, in the vicinity of the croft. Most crofters would build their house with neighbours helping, as was often the case with other crofting tasks. 

This shot shows I was clearly the correct height for the times as I just fit through the front door!!

Pretty tough life, but the house was quite large and appeared very cosy and warm. Before heading to our next destination, popped over to buy a coffee and fruit and nut slice and saw my second and third hares in the car park (left and right on the gravel):

Portree was our last stop of the day and opportunity to take a snap of their coloured houses. Here they are:

Walking back to the car we decided to grab our dinner and I saw this really narrow lane with steps and pot plants and just thought it looked interesting:

We were fortunate to snag the last table in the pub, enjoyed our meals and then back to our squeaky/creaky cottage for the night.

First up tomorrow is Eilean Donan (island of Donan to visit its Castle).

Toodle pips 🌜.